The Flickering Myth react…
What a bombshell dropped yesterday eh? After years and years of rumours we officially have the news that Pixar will be releasing Toy Story 4 in 2017. The film will be directed to John Lasseter and written by Rashida Jones and Will McCormack.
But what did our writing and editorial team think of the news?
Ozzy Armstrong: No. Just no. Toy Story 3 had the best and most final endings of almost any trilogy so continuing on just makes me incredibly sad in my heart-cage.
J-P Wooding: Has to be a good story as I thought we had reasonable closure to the series with the last one. Whereas the first couple had incredible visuals to wow us with, animated films can no longer just rely on them. I’m sure it’ll get the effort it deserves though and will be a cracker.
Chris Cooper: Why? Toy Story 3 ended perfectly. Maybe it will be great but at the moment I’m weary. Pixar hasn’t been what it was lately.
Luke Owen: Toy Story 3 was the perfect trilogy, and it’s easily the greatest trilogy ever made. This is such disheartening news because you know it didn’t come from a want to make a fourth, but more because it’s a billion dollar money machine. They should have just stuck with making the made-for-TV shorts…
Gav Logan: I love Toy Story but I’ve been dead against a fourth movie since it was rumoured a few years back. I mean, it will be nice to see everyone again and meet some new toys but it all feels a little desperate. I hope I’m eating my words when it gets released and they have a good story and don’t just regurgitate the same stuff over again. I want to see a couple of classic Kenner Star Wars toys in there. Buzz vs. Vader!
Anthony Donovan Stokes: Eh, I’ll see it probably
Andrew Naylor: I’m worried, very worried.
Eddy Gardiner: To stick with the general consensus, Toy Story 3 ended so damn wonderfully perfect that it doesn’t need to happen. But I’m sure it’ll prove me wrong.
Ben Rayner: I loved all of the trilogy and I personally think it ended on a really good note so why risk it at a chance for more money while sullying the name of the series? Bad move I think…
Paul Risker: Artistic reasoning or money making venture? Odds are on the latter. Difficult to muster up any kind of excitement at the prospect of the annihilation of one of the finest film trilogies.
Kris Wall: I’m hesitant, Toy Story 3 wrapped up the series brilliantly and I’ve been more than happy with just the shorts they’ve been doing since. My biggest worry is that Pixar are running out of creative steam, Cars 2 was a non starter and while Monsters University was fun, it failed to recapture the magic of Monsters Inc. However, if Toy Story 4 means a lot more of Carl Weathers’ Combat Carl from Toy Story of Terror, I’ll be happy to shelve my cynicism for awhile until I hear more.
Villordsutch: Has the cash cow not been milked enough!? I took my children to see Toy Story 3 and was under the assumption that was the final movie and it should have been! The upsetting thing is I love Toy Story, I’ve watched them all from the original showing on the cinema and I’ll probably find myself – feeling rather ashamed – queuing up to see this one too.
James Garcia: My immediate knee-jerk reaction is to say, “NO! PIXAR, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Toy Story 3 was, after all, a perfect end to the trilogy, and I’d much prefer that it stay that way. Fourth instalments in franchises usually don’t live up to their predecessors, so there’s a big risk here that Toy Story 4 will disappoint. With that said, my hesitancy toward a fourth instalment comes mixed with excitement of seeing these characters again. I’ve really enjoyed the handful of short films Pixar has put together, so there’s definitely room here for Toy Story 4 to be a huge hit.
So, at the end of the day I come down on the side of cautiously optimistic. Would I rather not see a Toy Story 4? Absolutely. But did I ever think that was going to happen? Absolutely not. The third film made too much money for Disney and Pixar to leave it alone, and the characters are so iconic and beloved that audiences will return to them again and again regardless of whether or not we *need* to. And I’m not going to lie, I’ll be there opening day.
Andrew Newton: I’m going to differ from everyone above. I love the toy story films. Possibly the best Pixar have produced and I’m quite looking forward to another film. A new home, new friends and hopefully a new adventure completely different from the last 3. Toy Story 4: Lotso’s Revenge.
Gary Collinson: I’m down for a fourth Toy Story. I think there’s mileage in it yet. I didn’t have high expectations for Toy Story 3 after such a long gap, but it was excellent, and Toy Story of Terror and the other short films have been fun too. However, in 3 years time, I may wish they’d stuck to the shorts.
Manny Camacho: Toy Story 3 made my entire family cry near the end. It was a very heart wrenching story for all of us, not because it was sad, but because it was bittersweet and we were able to relate. I have no idea how they’d top that story, which ended appropriately for the trilogy. I’m only guessing it’s more focused on the new kid in their lives and that the Halloween special was so well received, as a test, that it behoved the studio to continue the franchise with another film. I’ll be mid-row and centre with my family when 4 is in theatres, that’s for sure.
You also have to consider that many of the Disney films before it were never really solid franchises sustaining sequels. Many of the films on their own were masterpieces but none ever produced solid theatrical releases. Toy Story was critically and commercially viable in the theatres. That’s a compelling recipe to continue making movies for the franchise.
Anghus Houvouras: Man. That f***ing well over at Pixar has to be almost dry by now. It’s interesting that Disney animation has churned out some big movies over the last few years (Frozen, Big Hero 6) while Pixar kind of been puttering along the last few years with sequels and lackluster fare. Monsters University was a bore. The less said about crap like Cars 2, the better. Sadly, this is the problem with our zombie culture. Nothing stays dead. Not even when it was brought to a beautiful conclusion. Of course most people are going to be happy about Toy Story 4, because we live in this annoying geek culture where people get excited about more of the same. Dumb and Dumber To, 9 hours of Hobbit movies, and more Marvel than you shake a shield at. This is just a symptom of the disease that is currently rotting out the teeth of our inner child. If you’re genuinely excited about Toy Story 4, you’re probably the same people who will see Transformers 8, Pirates of the Caribbean 6, and The Avengers go to Uranus Part III on opening weekend. Embrace the new mediocrity!
—
So, not overly keen on the idea of it by the sounds of things! Be sure to check out the Flickering Myth Podcast thoughts on Toy Story 4 as well as Star Wars: The Force Awakens using the player below:
Originally published November 7, 2014. Updated July 3, 2023.
